Celtic hero bewildered by five big Kasper Schmeichel mistakes in Braga defeat

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Celtic’s defeat against Braga was a tough night for a few players.

But no member of Brendan Rodgers‘ team went through as difficult an evening as Kasper Schmeichel.

The Danish goalkeeper has largely been a reliable figure since making the move to Glasgow, holding down the first-choice goalkeeper spot.

But after a speculative effort from Ricardo Horta found its way in on Thursday despite looking easily saveable, the spotlight went onto the ‘keeper as it so often does.

And one Hoops was completely blunt in assessing Schmeichel’s performance in the Europa League defeat.

Stiliyan Petrov on Kasper Schmeichel’s Celtic performance vs Braga

The performance was not a positive one for Celtic on the whole – or the referee either, for that matter.

But when a goalkeeper makes an error, it tends to cost their side more – particularly when there have been rumblings of discontent over Schmeichel’s performances anyway.

WATCH: Celtic 0-2 Braga reaction…

For Stiliyan Petrov, the stopper’s errors were decisive, and part of an all-round messy Celtic performance.

Speaking on TNT Sports’ broadcast of the match, Petrov said: “The two goals are really disappointing, but it’s not just those two moments.”

“I think Celtic altogether have been really sloppy. With a team that used to dominate the games, control the ball, really look after the passes, today they were all over the place.

“Even Schmeichel – he made five big mistakes for a goalkeeper who can play with the ball. He made a lot of mistakes, and that gives the opposition a great opportunity to take advantage.”

A difficult evening for the Hoops number one, no doubt, and time will tell if he can use his experience to bounce back.

Kasper Schmeichel’s situation at Celtic

It’s not as if Schmeichel is a stick-on to start every week – Viljami Sinisalo was a highly-rated signing, despite coming in the same summer as his competitor.

When the Dane was injured towards the back end of last season, Sinisalo was given a run of games where he looked promising.

But after returning to fitness for the Scottish Cup final against Aberdeen, Schmeichel reclaimed his spot – but made a costly error in the game.

The question is not about Schmeichel’s credentials as a Celtic goalkeeper. Those are clear. It’s more about whether the present set of circumstances make the Hoops boss consider a change.